1 Timothy
Author: Paul
Paul always started off his epistles with his name.
Confirmed by Eusebius in Book 3, Chapter 25, Verse 2, of Ecclesiastical History.
Date: 62-64 A.D. (1)
Language: Greek
Purpose: To instruct Timothy, a young minister in Ephesus.
What kind of book?: Letter with "pastoral" instruction.
Reflection: In this letter, Paul states, "I do not permit a woman to teach..."(I Timothy 2:12 NIV). The key word is "I." For a culture which discriminated against women, Paul is giving a specific personal command, not a permanent command from God.
Jesus calls women to be ministers according to their calling just like men, or he would have had Martha and Mary at work in the kitchen. A number of Christians think women cannot be "ordained" as ministers due to specific statements by Paul in his Epistles for women to refrain from doing anything in church. However, if those church leaders were to follow the "letter" of what Paul states, then women could not even teach Sunday school. Paul gives a number of personal commands and context specific demands. We must work to distinguish them from moral commands, which requires the context of the passage to be carefully considered. Such examination is a delicate art.
Hunter Irvine
(1) Craig S. Keener, The IVP Bible Background Commentary, New Testament (Downers Grove: IVP Academic, 1993), 607.
